it agrees to a tax hike at above $450,000. that cut-off point. an up-and-down vote for the estate tax. new spending measures to extend unemployment benefits for 2 million americans. and turning off the sequester, the automatic spending cuts that are set to kick in in a matter of days. any deal would have to be rushed through both chambers of congress. house speaker boehner and his rank and file are sitting on the sidelines waiting to see if it will be a deal or no deal from the senate. >> this whole thing is a national embarrassment. i think it's an embarrassment to the president. it's an embarrassment to both sides of the aisle and both the house and the senate. >> how do you get out of it? >> first of all, whatever happens today is really inconsequential. >> ultimately, you're going to have to have people come together in a bipartisan way to get this done. you're not going to be able to get an agreement passed with just republicans. >> republicans simply can't utter the word "yes."

they cannot utter the word "yes" without them uttering the word "yes" we can't get a deal. look, this is -- i feel like you're talking to a 5-year-old and, you know, saying, look. you have to eat your vegetables. >> we went over the cliff a long time ago. we just didn't know it. look at the leadership that we have leading us. i mean, it's like lemmings. come on. >> all right. that's what's being said right now. joining us from capitol hill is nbc news correspondent mike viqueira. we have some elements from what we understand to be a deal at the moment. what would you say the mood is right now? what are some of the other details? break it down for us. >> richard, it's funny. at this point we're stuck sort of reading tea leaves. yes, we've had indications with more detail than we've got in days on what the outlines of that deal might be. but i got to tell you any deal if it were to pass both houses of congress here in the last 12 hours before midnight would carry with it the seeds of further confrontation and not that much further down the road.

maybe two, perhaps three months. let's take a look one more time at what is being discussed now. mitch mcconnell and joe biden talked into the wee hours until 12:30 last night and 6:30 this morning. $450,000 as the threshold for couples, $400,000 for individuals over which your taxes would go up about four percentage points. estate tax compromise. this is something democrats want as well because the estate tax is due to zoom up to 55% on estates more than $1 million if they're passed and nobody wants to see that happen. they are trying to work on a compromise. unemployment, insurance benefits. obviously something urgent for millions of people collecting and the long-term unemployed who have been unemployed for quite sometime. delaying that sequester. this is what i'm talking about. they're talking about delaying it perhaps three months. this is the ultimate kicking the can down the road. remember the sequester is what got us to this point to begin with. it was supposed to be trigger, the guiotine hanging over the

necks of the members of congress to git them to do something by tonight. we only have about 13 more hours. one more thing to show you, folks. we'll take a track here of the limits of this negotiation, the upper income limits we've been talking about. the president campaigned for quite sometime, $250,000, a ceiling if you will over which your taxes would go up. $400,000 was the last obama offer that we heard of. $450,000. the new democratic offer that we're hearing of. the gop is seeking to get it up to $550,000 per and um for income. and remember plan b that blew up in the face of house republicans? a million dollars and above and that is the key question as we head into this. what will the house of representatives do if the senate were to reach this deal with joe biden today? >> as the senate convenes we see them gathering on the left-hand side of the screen right now, very quickly is it even physically possible, we have 13 hours to do this. >> reporter: sure. but in the senate in particular that's usually the place where

things get clogged up. they can really do anything if they get everybody onboard. unanimous consent, not to bore everybody with procedure but they can basically wave their hands over this thing if no one stands up to object. the house, however, ironically, may be kind of a different story where they normally can jam things through. we'll see what happens there if this thing goes through the senate. >> our old pro there mike viqueira telling us what's happening there. thank you so much. let's go and listen to what senate majority leader harry reid is saying. >> we really are running out of time. americans are still threatened with a tax hike. in just a few hours. i hope we can keep in mind and i know we will our single most important goal is to protect middle class families. whether or not we reach an agreement and the short time we have left we'll need cooperation on both sides to prevent taxes from going up tomorrow for every family in america. i repeat there is still some issues that need to be resolved before we can bring the legislation to the floor.

>> under the previous order then the senate will proceed to business until 12:00 noon. this is for debate only. senators are permitted to speak -- >> there you go. the senate floor. we are listening to them as senate majority harry reid opened it up for today after they called it a day yesterday. joining us now is congressman steny hoyer, the house minority whip. thanks for being with us. i appreciate your time. you listened to our report from mike viqueira. you just heard senate majority harry reid. he spoke. from what you know about the details of this biden deal, did we get it right? is there any other detail you're aware of here? >> i'm not aware of all the specifics. i think generally you outlined what i have understood as the present status of negotiations. all of us believe i think that going over the cliff should not be the option that we follow. but it's been very, very difficult to get any kind of agreement in this congress.

i don't mean just the last few days but in this congress, unfortunately. but giving up is not an option for us. we have another 13 hours as has been pointed out if we can reach agreement, if we can have a unanimous consent in the senate i think there is still time to act but of course it's running out very, very quickly. >> how is the mood? do you feel good about this? or do you believe we'll go over the cliff here? >> well, i'm still hopeful. while we're here all the members are in washington, ready to act. the issue is whether or not we can come to a consensus. the administration in my opinion continues to try to make offers that will get to an agreement. unfortunately, as was pointed out in your earlier report, even a million dollars seemed unacceptable to the republican conference just a few days ago. the president is not going to go there. we're not going to go there. the american people don't think we ought to go there.

what the american people want to make sure is that working americans, middle class americans, don't get a tax hike tomorrow. that's been our objective. we have continually offered to vote on a bill if the republicans would put it on the floor to make sure nobody under $250,000, i mean nobody, 100% of americans on their first $250,000 of income, would not get a tax increase. >> speaking of which, congressman -- we're prepared obviously to work together to reach consensus. we know that there are going to be things in there that we probably won't agree with but that if it gets us to an agreement, that precludes working americans, middle class americans from getting a tax hike, precludes those relying on unemployment insurance to put food on their tables, to get, to make sure they have some confidence that that is going to be available to them, you know, we're prepared to make a compromise. >> let's talk about compromise and concessions. you heard what our reporter mike viqueira said a moment ago. the deal the vice president is offering and the different

thresholds, 450 is the latest number we're aware of. the president discussed the issue of concessions. he has made so far. he did that in an interview yesterday on "meet the press." take a listen. >> the offers that i've made to them have been so fair that a lot of democrats get mad at me. i mean, offered to make some significant changes to our entitlement programs in order to reduce the deficit. >> all right. we're just listening to a democrat, tom harkin, criticizing the deal so far. the question -- we're speaking specifically of the concessions, perhaps the $450,000 offer we're aware of coming from vice president biden. are the president and democrats caving too much? tom harkin is expressing that frustration. >> well, i think we're all frustrated about that. i think the american people, 60% to 70% of the american people believe the president was

correct in setting the limits at 250 and 200,000 for individuals as the cap on making sure that those taxes didn't go up for those americans making less than that. 70% of americans think that's about right. they voted in the presidential election and re-elected a president who said that was his criteria. but the president understands this is a process where compromise is necessary. the house of representatives, controlled by the republicans, clearly has indicated that a million dollars was not acceptable to it in the united states senate. clearly, mitch mcconnell controls the ability under the senate rules of the legislation to move forward. so the president simply is saying, look. i don't want taxes to go up on working americans. i want to make sure that the unemployed have some help going forward and we need to move on those two issues. he is prepared to compromise and has been willing to compromise and, in fact, has compromised

throughout the last two years. do some democrats not like that? yes, i think that is the case. i frank liam not enthusiastic about the compromise being talked about today. >> would you vote yes on it? >> we'll have to see what the final product is. but i think we need to get to compromise. we need to move forward. nobody wants to go over this cliff. going over the cliff is economically harmful to the united states of america, to the growth of jobs in america, and to the middle class. we don't want to go over the cliff. again, the legislative process when you have a -- with a democratic president and democratic senate but without the 60 votes necessary to move legislation forward and a republican led congress, if you don't compromise, the american people are hurt and the country is hurt and the economy is hurt. >> that's what americans want to hear. that compromise is reached there. congressman steny hoyer of maryland thank you so much for your time. senator harkin on the floor speaking, not also agreeing with

the terms of the deal. appreciate your time. >> you bet. thank you. we have many more voices weighing in. republican congressman tom cole of oklahoma joins us live in a few moments and later this hour we'll hear from congressman steve israel, democrat from new york. stick around for that. the other big developing story we're following, secretary of state hillary clinton in a new york city hospital this morning being treated for a blood clot. her spokesperson says the clot was discovered during a routine followup exam yesterday in the wake of the concussion she suffered several weeks ago following a fall. now, nbc news chief science and health correspondent robert bazell is live from new york there in front of the presbyterian hospital. bob, what do we know about secretary clinton's condition and how she is being treated right now? >> richard, we know precious little. we had the one statement yesterday evening from secretary clinton's staff that said she suffered a concussion that was related -- excuse me -- suffered a blood clot related to this

concussion. usually when somebody has a blood clot related to a concussion it is in the brain and would not be treated with anticlotting drugs. she is being treated with anticlotting drugs. so maybe she has a blood clot someplace else. we don't know anything -- there have been no statements today either from the hospital here or from the state department or for her personal staff about what her condition is. so, unfortunately, we don't have a lot to report and there is some mystery to this. a lot of doctors tell me that this story doesn't add up. there could be something else wrong with her. we're not saying we know that. the lack of information leads us to have to make those kind of statements because we just don't know what is going on with her health. of course her health is a matter of great concern because not only is she the secretary of state and leaving that position but is talked about often as a presidential contender. her health would become a major issue. >> thank you so much, nbc's robert bazell. we're keeping our eye on the senate back in session with the

fiscal cliff talks now down to the wire. the big question is even if the senate reaches a deal as they continue the debate will republicans pass anything with tax hikes in the house? up next republican congressman tom cole. and baby makes three. kim kardashian and kanye west's big baby announcement. also, sydney, australia celebrating the new year just three hours ago with fireworks over the famous opera house. in new york city, an already crowded times square. people waking up there. our big question what is your new year's resolution for 2013? tweet me at richard lui. we'll share some of your comments later.

a live look at the markets

which appear to be taking going over the fiscal cliff in stride. many people say it is built into the market. many investors are still confident leaders will strike some sort of deal as talks go down to the wire and even if they don't they are counting on senate majority leader harry reid to present a backup proposal to limit some of the damage. we're watching live pictures on the right-hand side of your screen. senator barbara boxer speaking. they just reconvened about 15 minutes ago. we continue to keep our ears on the floor as they debate what we believe to be the latest offer coming from vice president biden. joining me live right now republican congressman tom cole of oklahoma a member of the house budget and appropriations committee. thank you so much for being with us today. >> thank you. >> congressman, you were one of the first gop members of congress to support raising tax rates on incomes over $250,000. that threshold we're talking about today. you said on "morning joe" today that deadlines are like alarm clocks so has washington heard this alarm and from what you know about the latest deal do

you think it'll get done? >> first of all, i am not for raising rates and never have been but you have to recognize taxes are going up on every single american unless we act. i don't consider making sure that doesn't happen to 98% or 99% of the people a tax raise. quite the opposite it is a permanent tax cut for almost every american. yeah. look, i think the senate will eventually come to a deal. we may technically go over the cliff tonight but i think the thing will still be resolved in terms of taxes by the end of this congress. that is by the morning of january 3rd at the latest. then we move to the things that count and that is spending and entitlement reform. we have three big triggering events coming up. the sequestration itself, the end of the continuing resolution in march and of course the debt ceiling. those things are going to force us back to spending because the revenue issue is going to be settled quickly. >> what is your number? we've heard 450,000 right now.

on the gop side they want 550,000. >> i don't think the number is that important. we're talking the difference between 98 and 99% of the american people. i'm not too worried about that. it's what else is in the package. i think if we have any spending cuts, any entitlement reform would be extraordinarily helpful. at the end of the day if the senate can come to a bipartisan agreement it'll come over here. we're certainly not going to have every republican vote for whatever is agreed to over there. i think there could be a bipartisan compromise and we could at least give people some certainty in terms of tax rates. >> i want your reaction to what your republican colleague senator tom coburn of oklahoma said today on msnbc's "morning joe." take a listen to this. >> you want to cut the taxes, let's cut more spending and pay for it. that is where i disagree with republicans. if you are going to give, if you would have passed the bush tax cut and cut spending to pay for it, we wouldn't be where we are

today. >> right. >> and what we want -- we want to starve the beast? guess what? starve the beast doesn't work because republicans want to spend almost as much as democrats do. >> all right. very clear words there, congressman, about his own party. how many in your caucus agree with that sentiment, what coburn said there, and which spending priorities would they sacrifice if any? >> you have to remember the last time there was a republican congress and republican president the budget deficit was $167 billion and we were at war. i mean that is pretty remarkable as a record. it's exploded since the democrats first took the house and senate back in '06 and then added the presidency. that's where most of the spending comes from. now i agree with tom. we need to do more in that area. we've done that. the ryan budget itself, you know, is a pretty major step in the right direction. that's passed the house twice. our problem has been we haven't had anybody on the other side of the aisle. the senate hasn't passed a budget in three years. we sent over legislation in may

that would take care of both the sequester and the tax rates. they don't have to accept it but they do need to pick it up and amend it and, you know, send us something back. you have a democratic majority in the senate twiddling its thumbs. you can't even -- poor leader mcconnell can't even get a counterproposal back out of them without calling the white house. it's just the democratic majority in the senate is dysfunctional and i think it's made the whole budgeting process extraordinarily difficult for two years. >> the criticism is that the republicans in the house have been unable to pass even such measures as plan b that the speaker pushed forward. >> that is a different point. >> i wish we could talk more but we have to go. republican congressman tom cole of oklahoma thanks so much. >> we'll talk about that another time. thank you. >> have a good new year. the possible fiscal cliff isn't the only thing happening at the stroke of midnight. more than 400 new laws take effect. some have a major impact including in new hampshire partial birth abortions will be banned. same sex couples will be able to marry in maryland. also registered sex offenders in

illinois will no longer be able to dress up like santa or the easter bunny and will not be allowed to hand out candy on halloween. then there are some laws that just make you kind of go, hum. it will now be illegal for employers to require or request social media passwords in several states including maryland, new jersey, and delaware. motorcyclists in illinois can now run a red light if that light fails to change. in florida, your swamp buggy will no longer be considered a motor vehicle.

it is about 50/50 right now. i obviously would like to see a deal that would avoid the cliff but it depends on the content of the deal. >> it's a shame and disgrace that we are where we are. the american people are fed up first of all with this process. secondly, with the priorities that are coming forward. >> lawmakers on both sides of

the aisle sharing their views on the impending fiscal cliff. with that clock ticking and no deal in sight the big question is, what will happen next. let's bring in our new year's eve political power panel from the white house. we have nbc news correspondent kristen welker, cnbc contributor and democratic strategist keith boykin and republican strategist allison stewart. kristen, kelly o'donnell was saying earlier today that many on the hill see bynum's entrance into the negotiations as a good sign, that something could happen here. why is biden in a unique position here? >> happy new year's eve to you as well. vice president biden served as a u.s. senator for more than 30 years. few people really understand the way these types of negotiations work like he does. in addition to that, equally importantly, 23 of those years were spent serving alongside minority leader mitch mcconnell. so they have a good working relationship, good personal relationship.

you remember that yesterday mcconnell said he needs a dance partner in these negotiations. he didn't feel as though they were moving forward. so he reached out to vice president biden. biden engaged. and what looked like a stalemate yesterday really has begun to move forward overnight, the two on the phone late into the evening until midnight i am told working out the details of a compromise. their staffers on the phone into the early morning hours. folks here at the white house up quite late as well. so it looks like some type of compromise is starting to form that would include increasing taxes on those making $450,000 or less. remember president obama wanted that threshold at 250,000. house speaker john boehner wanted it much higher at about a million dollars. this is somewhere in between. also, an extension of the unemployment insurance benefits. they're still hashing out some of the final details but it does appear as though the vice president was key in helping these negotiations to move forward. >> the negotiations go on there,

kristen, we are watching the senate floor as they discuss the very details of that and debate it. keith, to you on this. political pointing out, biden's inclusion sets up a good cop/bad cop xen arroyo here among the democrats with the vice president and senator harry reid, those particular characters if you will in these negotiations. and was said by kristen that vice president -- the vice president and mitch mcconnell spoke at 12:45 a.m. and again this morning at 6:30 a.m. how do democrats use the good cop/bad cop to their advantage? >> i think the democrats have some sort of unanimity, not complete unanimity of opinion about the tax increase issue. the exact number i think is an area of negotiation that democrats are willing to move on. but it is ironic to me, you know, that we've basically given up the issue of the payroll tax cut from 4.2% to 2.6%. it will affect millions of

families and the unemployment benefits has to be part of the deal because it will po tlings affect working families as well. it is strange we're spending so much time worried about income tax increases on the wealthiest americans while we're not concerned about the tax increase happening to the majority of working class americans. that should be our focus as democrats. i think that the vice president has to be able to deliver that message and has to be able to convince enough of republicans if there are any who are willing to sit down and figure out how to stimulate the economy. you have to focus on growing the economy from the bottom up not the top down. >> what would be needed on the house side is a couple dozen republicans to move over and agree with any bill that might go over and be passed back to the house. there is a new headline in "new york" magazine. it reads this. why is obama caving on taxes? the article reads in part, the erosion signals not only a major substantive problem in its own right but also raises disturbing

questions about obama's ability to handle his entire second-term agenda. do republicans sense a little weakness here, an opportunity? could the president's concession hurt his ability later on to negotiate with the gop? >> no. i think he is doing what needs to be done. unfortunately, this president hasn't operated or led this country like keith's former boss, president clinton, who understood the art of negotiation and actually getting there and rolling up his sleeves and having discussions well before everyone's back is against the wall. i can't believe i'm saying it but i am encouraged to see joe bide nen there and talking with mitch mcconnell. it is good to have the negotiations. they need to in her reference it's better to have them as fred as tear and ginger rogers dancing and discussing issues back and forth as opposed to what we have with thelma and louise over the cliff.

we need to focus on the most important issue here. it's not just raising the taxes on middle class or anyone. the real issue here is cutting spending. we cannot just focus on the tax rates. we have to look at the out of control spending we have in washington and not just right now for the immediate problem, the fiscal cliff, but when we have the debt ceiling issue coming up the spending is going to be the issue that needs to ab dressed. >> i'm sorry. we have to leave it there. i apologize. a busy day. busy new year's eve. surprising or maybe not for many. we've been watching what is happening in washington, d.c. my thanks to all of you. hillary clinton hospitalized for a blood clot. but there is also good news for the secretary of state and it could mean something for 2016. but before we get to 2016, we need to finish this year, right? lots of people already gathering at times square to celebrate the new year. sorry. sore knee.

blast of cold feels nice. why don't you use bengay zero degrees? it's the one you store in the freezer. same medicated pain reliever used by physical therapists. that's chilly. [ male announcer ] new bengay zero degrees. freeze and move on. about 12 1/2 hours and counting now until we could fall off the so-called fiscal cliff.

the house and senate are both in session. there are reports of progress in reaching a deal there. here is senator majority leader harry reid in just the past half hour. >> there are a number of issues on which the two sides are still apart and negotiations are continuing as i speak. whether or not we reach an agreement in the short time we have left we'll need cooperation on both sides to prevent taxes going up tomorrow for every family in america. >> joining me live right now is democratic congressman steve israel of new york, who is chairman of the democratic congressional campaign committee. a lot happening there, congressman. thanks for speaking with us. just to get some details we just got handed to us from kelly o'donnell, that is that in the latest deal in terms of the details, the taxes that are being discussed, regardless of the rate for a moment, they would be permanent and would not have a sunset provision. again, the progress is that they have come up with some understanding of an income tax threshold according to kelly o'donnell, and estate taxes as well. they've come up with some sort

of agreement there. what is your thought about just these details that we're all learning right now? >> well, i am hopeful. i'm hopeful because we are seeing signs of compromise. the democrats have offered one compromise. on the issue of threshold for tax cuts. a higher threshold i think is a good compromise. it makes sense. and it helps us avoid going off this cliff. at the end of the day i am hopeful when both parties are willing to compromise. you cannot negotiation with a skid mark. up to now we have been in a position where we've been negotiating with skid marks. we come closer. they leave a skid mark and go further away. if in the next few hours republicans are willing to take yes for an answer. we'll continue to negotiate in good faith. but they've got to be willing to compromise and i hope that we're at that point right now. >> would you be open to that permanence with whatever they do come up with in terms of an

agreement when it comes to these tax rates and the level? >> you know, i -- >> it was said earlier on the floor that that is not something he supports. >> i am not going to make any judgments until i see the detaste. we have a lot of speculation, negotiations between the vice president and mitch mcconnell. i want to see the package before i jump to a conclusion or make a judgment. i think it is only fair and it is fair to my constituents. conceptually both sides need to be willing to compromise. we've shown an ability on the democratic side to do so. the president has shown that ability. he was originally at $250,000 then offered $400,000. the house republicans said no to a million dollars, an increase in taxes for people earning over a million dollars. we need to come back to the middle and get this done. my constituents, people throughout america, want to get this done. there is a very strong appetite to doing that. >> i want to change topics and get your reaction to the hospitalization of secretary hillary clinton. she of course represented new york as senator before becoming

secretary of state. are you hearing anything new about her health? >> i've not heard anything new about her health. we do know this. she is as tough as nails. she is strong. she is resilient. i know we wish her a very speedy recovery. but she's got the fortitude, that inner strength that makes me feel that she will come to a speedy recovery. we're all hoping for that. >> some in the republican party had questioned whether her illness was really suggesting she was trying to avoid facing direct questions on benghazi. what is your thought? >> that is what's wrong with washington. you know, people who invent conspiracies behind every cloud. these are the same people who said the moon landing was staged in a hollywood set. let this woman rest and get well and give her some space. stop creating a conspiracy behind every cloud. >> thank you so much democratic congressman steve israel of new york. appreciate it. >> thank you.

it's already new year's in new zealand. the first major city in the world to welcome in 2013. in australia over a million people turned out to watch a spectacular display at sydney's harbor bridge. then in tokyo monks rang in the new year ringing a temple bell 108 times in keeping with their tradition. nbc's ron mott is in new york's times square where preparations are under way for tonight's big show. >> a good new year's eve to you, richard, here in times square. on 365 days of the year it is a pretty electric place with all of those lights. it will be especially so tonight. an estimated crowd of a million plus are expected to jam into times square tonight to watch the ball drop and usher in 2013. now securing all of those folks is a pretty serious business and that requires a lot of man power from the nypd. they won't give us specifics on the number of police that will be patrolling times square tonight but suffice it to say it is into the number of thousands.

several thousands. not just here in times square but all around the city. nypd commissioner, police commissioner ray kelly, telling us they will have roof top patrols that will be mounted police on horseback, police on scooters. they will of course obviously be on the ground. there are 54 checkpoints for people to get through. this is a hearty bunch that will watch this ball drop tonight because once they get inside the pen sometime this afternoon they will not be allowed back in once they leave. so the million or so crowd that will stand and watch the ball drop tonight will be standing for quite a few hours today. in terms of weather last year was balmy at midnight when the ball dropped. it was about 45 degrees. going to be much colder this go around. a forecast at midnight tonight of about 35 degrees with the wind chill bringing the temperatures down to about 25. it's all about layers as we usher out 2012 and bring in 2013. that's the latest in times square, richard. now back to you. >> you have a bunch of layers too. ron mott in times square with that report.

gun control legislation is at the top of the president's agenda for his second term. but it will not be easy. congressman john yarmouth on moe tension road blocks. plus big baby news for kim kardashian and kanye west. details ahead in the news now for you. our big question what is your new year's resolution for 2013? you can tweet me at richard lui. we will share some of your thoughts a little later. [ lisa ] my name's lisa, and chantix helped me quit. i honestly loved smoking, and i honestly didn't think i would ever quit. [ male announcer ] along with support, chantix is proven to help people quit smoking. it reduces the urge to smoke. it put me at ease that you could smoke on the first week. [ male announcer ] some people had changes in behavior, thinking or mood, hostility, agitation, depressed mood and suicidal thoughts or actions while taking or after stopping chantix. if you notice any of these stop taking chantix and call your doctor right away. tell your doctor about any history of depression or other mental health problems, which could get worse while taking chantix. don't take chantix if you've had a serious allergic or skin reaction to it.

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do you have the stomach for the political fight for new gun control laws? >> here is the bottom line. we're not going to get this done unless the american people decide it's important. and so this is not going to be simply a matter of me spending political capital. >> president obama on "meet the press" over the weekend. in the wake of the newtown, connecticut school shootings. the president insisted he wants new gun control legislation passed in the next year. he put vice president biden in charge of that task force to

make recommendations to him. democratic congressman john yarmouth of kentucky joins us now and he sits on the budget oversight and government reform and ethics committees. good to see you. >> good to be with you. >> what is your thought on what the president said on "meet the press?" >> i think he is absolutely right. what sets this apart, however, is that we do have presidential leadership on this issue. that is something that hasn't been there during past attempts to do something to curb gun violence. i am thrilled about that. i agree with him totally. i've said many times the public has to keep the drum beat going because unless there is a perceived cost to many of the politicians up here not much is likely to happen. we have to make sure the public is engaged and continues to be engaged. >> our political director chuck todd made the comparison to the health care reform bill and how that was the president's big accomplishment for his first administration. this could be up there for his second administration. his second go round of four years here. but immigration seems to be one

that might get support on both sides. when it comes to the issue of political capital, what is available out there, congress n congressman, do you think it's practical here? >> i do because i think you've got an emotional situation right now helping the gun debate along. we haven't had that to nearly the extent we do now. and, you know, i think things are going to happen as we move forward. i hate to be maude lynn but when the police report ultimately comes out and we find out how many bullets were actually dispensed in sandy hook and we learn more about the inordinate amount of fire power that was brought to bear on those innocent children, those are things that are going to continue to keep the momentum alive for doing common sense things like conducting background checks, expanding those and also dealing with high capacity magazines and assault weapons. >> like for so many here, the president said that day in newtown was the worst day of his

presidency. i want to switch to another subject here. fiscal cliff. we're talking about here words that are banished. lake superior university puts out a list of banished words this year. numbers one and two this year are fiscal cliff and kick the can down the road. now, regardless of today's outcome is the damage already done for congress? whether they come up with a small deal or not here when it comes to the american people, they've already decided congress is useless. >> well, i think those of us who tried to function over the last couple years in congress have been saying that. we can't figure out who even the 10%, who support congress, are. we are totally dysfunctional right now and this is just probably the worst example of it. you know, i heard speaker boehner say a number of times that he doesn't believe in compromise and a lot of republicans say the same thing. they say let's find common ground and act on that. well, there just isn't much common ground. if, in fact, the numbers we're

hearing about the senate deal, whether $450,000 threshold or $550,000, that is not a matter of principle. that's just a matter of policy and splitting hairs and differences of dollars. so i think unfortunately we've got a lot of people on the other side of the aisle who are confusing principle and policy and refuse to compromise either. right now we're just talking about policies and what is best for the american people and what makes sense. so in theory we should be able to function but so far we haven't been able to prove that we can. >> 12 hours to go. thursday you get a lot of the new fellow congressmen there on the hill and they get sworn in the 113 so perhaps that also will be a change. democratic congressman john yarmuth of kentucky, thank you again. >> thanks, richard. >> here is a look at some of the stories topping the news now. at least nine people were killed, more than two dozen injured after a bus crashed through a guard rail and plummeted down an embankment in pendleton, oregon. the section of the interstate where the crash occurred is known for being dangerous. new complications for venezuelan

president hugo chavez three weeks after undergoing cancer surgery. on top of a respiratory infection. his vice president said his condition is quote delicate. the new york giants welcomed 200 students, parents, and faculty members from sandy hook elementary school to their final game of the season against the philadelphia eagles on sunday. the giants won that, 42-7, but they still did not make the playoffs. here is what the nfl playoff picture looks like. the redskins' first division title in 13 years gets them a postseason date with the sea hawks. the vikings during the nfc wild card spot on a rematch with the packers and the new england patriots are back with a bye. kim kardashian is pregnant. kanye west broke the news during a concert in atlantic city last night. the hash tag, kimye is now trending on twitter. [ male announcer ] there are only so many foods that make kids happy. and even fewer that make moms happy too. with wholesome noodles and bite sized chicken,

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i went to a number of women's groups and said can you help us find folks, and they

brought us whole binders full of women. >> binders full of women. mitt romney's off hand remark at the second presidential debate set off a social media frenzy. remember on facebook, twitter, and even spawned this popular tumblr page from texts from hillary to clint eastwood's chair. these were just some of the many moments in 2012 in which politics went viral. joining us now for a look back is politico's patrick gavin. one day left in 2012. let's look back and talk about the binders full of women. seemingly trivial moment that may have impacted the election in a big way. >> yeah. you know, i really think that's how twitter has changed politics. you know, i think that a lot of campaigns might think that a comment like that, you would hope, that perhaps somebody was going to get a beer from the frig and might have missed it, but what twitter does is captures these moments that could maybe otherwise get overlooked and focuses the nation's attention. that was the case with the binders full of women comment. romney was not able to live that one down, especially on-line.

>> take a lisp. i want to play this one for you. >> i'm sorry, jim. i am going to stop the subsidy to pbs. >> big bird here, patrick, may have never been so famous. did the big bird situation really hit home some. >> it did in the sense that it sort of made romney a purchling bag in the same way that another item on our list that some of the social media highlights either republicans or the national bench. when you get the moments that are sort of funny on the substance of them, but also sort of lend themselves so social media, and that was the case with clint eastwood and the case with the big bird comment. a lot of big bird fans on twitter, and they sort of made mitt romney eat his words on that one with the fake accounts and things like that. >> there goes the invisible obama. we have that chair there. that was a funny account. that was opened just within that same night. there's also this photo that was tweeted out by the president on election night. you remember. it became the most retweeted

photo of all time. >> that's right. you know, i think what's interesting to look forward to -- or maybe not look forward to -- is we saw so many events in the 2012 cycle that were the most retweeted or the highest volume. that's because the reality is that because all we talk about nowadays is twitter. twitter is relatively new, and people are joining on-line en masse every single day. all the records we saw this year in 2012, that photo being top among them, i imagine they will all be eclipsed in 2016 as more and more people come on board. >> we have 2014 ahead of us as well. what do you make of that? what might we see when it comes to social media? >> i think it all really goes to show that nothing can go escaped, and you can't make any errors. maybe there was a day before the internet in which perhaps maybe a reporter didn't catch something or maybe somebody didn't see that. between twitter and facebook and cell phone cameras and youtube, there's no way that anything can go away, and so obviously nobody can emerge flawless from that, but what might have happened in the past, it's been a small mistake and now get amplified

ten-fold. >> all those metrics just totally blown up. politico's patrick gavin, thank you. have a great new year. thanks for stopping by. a happy new year to all of you as well. that wraps things up for me. i'm richard lui in for thomas roberts. now with alex wait wagner is next. joanne reid is filling in. there might be more pictures of the president hugging michelle. it may get something done in d.c., wouldn't you think? >> i suspect he can get a hug anyway, but it might be a tighter hug if he can get something done. >> absolutely. americans are getting ready to pop the few year's champagne, while congress considers dumping the bubbly down the drain. there's a lot of talking on capitol hill, but not much doing. are we likely to get a cliff deal of any time before midnight countdown? we are packing our parachutes with luke russert, aman jabbers, politico's ben white, and mckay and the huffington post ben. plus, the latest on secretary of state hillary clinton's health concerns and how the new benghazi report and succession at stake will impact the white

house's other looming cabinet concerns. and the president officially puts gun control on his second term agenda. can his new priority become a reality? all that when "now" starts in a mere 180 seconds. keep my eye o. but, i didn't always watch out for myself. with so much noise about health care... i tuned it all out. with unitedhealthcare, i get information that matters... my individual health profile. not random statistics. they even reward me for addressing my health risks. so i'm doing fine... but she's still going to give me a heart attack. we're more than 78,000 people looking out for more than 70 million americans. that's health in numbers. unitedhealthcare.